by Bernard Wagner
NEBL In The Paint
WESTERN BALLAZ
It must have felt forever for the defending champs Hurricanes to finally secure their first win of the season, and understandably so, given the fact that during last year’s championship run, they were essentially immune to losing streaks, never once suffering back to back losses, while coasting to a league best 16 wins 3 loss campaign, inclusive of post season play. So it was a sort of enigma for team management and coaching staff to see their team be immerse in early season mediocrity at (0-2), albeit very early in the campaign.
In any event, whatever it was, whether it be the home cooking, or simply theatmosphere which the new SCA auditorium provided; the Hurricanes with their play, undoubtedly demonstrated that you should never underestimate the heart of a champion.
Led by Leroy Louriano 22 pts 4 rebs and 6 asst, Akeem Watters 18 pts 12 rebs 1 asst 5 stls, and Andrew White 16 pts 6 rebs, the Hurricanes pounced early on the Ballaz, jumping out with 10 unanswered points and finishing the quarter with the 26-12 lead. The Ballaz however were able to regroup in the second and third quarters, outscoring the Hurricanes 45-33 behind Darwin “Puppy” Leslie 23 pts 3 rebs 4 asst 2 stls and James Milton 17 pts 5 rebs 1 asst 2 stls, whilstpullingwithin two-pointsof the Hurricanes 59-57.This lead was extended by the Hurricanes to four in early fourth quarter play, behind a steal and an ensuing jump shot by Leroy Louriano. James Milton of the Ballaz responded rapidly with a layup of his own to bring his team again within two. The fourth quarter was a sort of grind-out quarter, with neither team being able to put away the other. As a matter of fact the game was only a narrow four point lead for the Hurricanes 81-77 with 1:19 seconds remaining in regulation. However critical turnovers, and key missed opportunities spelled misfortunes for the visiting CayoBallaz as they fell by the final score of 86-77.
The Hurricanes appeared much quicker than the Ballaz tonight beating them soundly in fast break points 21 to 8 and in the paint 54 to 36. In addition theBallaz struggled from the field, shooting at a 38% clip, while the Hurricanes shot a remarkable 55%. Both teams were horrible from beyond the arc at 22% and 25% respectively. The rebounding edge went to the Hurricanes 47-39, while the other key offensive and defensive categories were a mirror of each other. Both teams now stand with identical records of (1-2), and both go on the road this coming weekend.
BELIZE CITY NO LIMIT REMAINS WINLESS, FALLS TO THE ORANGE WALK RUNNING REBELS 88-82
(Orange Walk Running Rebels, American import James Ewing)
Anticipation abounded inside the Orange Walk Multi-Purpose Complex on Saturday night as the Orange Walk faithful waited with a high level of expectation to see their newest acquisition in action that being American importJames Ewing, formerly of DangrigaDream Ballers.He would not disappoint, tallying 20 pts on 8 of 9 shooting from the field while adding 9 rebs 4 asst and 2 stls in 27 minutes of play as his Rebels extended the Belize City No Limit team losing streak to now 3 games, and winless in the standings, with the 88-82 win. Ewing was ably assisted by the smooth and unrelenting play of Roger Reneau 23 pts 3 rebs 4 asst and the witty Randy Usher 11 pts 2 rebs 5 assts.
Meanwhile the Belize City No Limit team has had a tough start to the 2017 season, they obviously have had major challenges in cultivating an identity, a winning culture, that semblance of organizational leadership, so to speak. They’ve already encounter an early season fallout with Head coach, TremettPerriott, which has resulted in team manager, David Alamillataking over the dual reins of Head coach/Manager. He clearly has embraced the responsibility and has since enlisted the services of veteran point guard Bernard Felix to add backcourt poise and experience. He seemingly has paid some early dividends contributing 10 pts 8 asstsin the loss to go along with Kenny Brown 12 pts 8 rebs 3 asst and Marcus Lewis 11 pts 2 rebs.
The Rebels as a team shot 51% from the field, while Belize City No Limit could only muster 48% accuracy. It was even worse from behind 3-point land for both clubs as they could only managed a 12% (1/8) and 21% (4/19) accuracy level respectively. The latter had the rebounding and ball distribution edge, outrebounding the Rebels 39-22, while totaling 25 assist to the Rebels 23 assist.
The Rebels now stand at (1-1) on the season, while No Limit falls to (0-3).
SAN PEDRO TIGERSHARKS TAKES HUGE 81-55 BITE OUT OF THE BELMOPAN BANDITS
League leading San Pedro Tiger sharks is off to a great start in the 2017 NEBL Championship, and this was on full display this past Saturday night at the San Pedro High School basketball court as the Tiger sharks won their fourth game in as many outings; walloping the Bandits from Belmopan by the final score of 81-55.
The Tiger sharks attacked quickly and ferociously from tipoff as Ashton Edwards brought the house down with the early dunk to give his team the early 4-0 lead. Raul Roches pushed the lead to 7-2 with a deep trey. Meanwhile the Bandits had a hard time putting the ball in the hoop in the 1st quarter, as they could only managed to hit 4 of 8 shots from the field, which resulted in the Tiger sharks jumping out to the early 21-8 lead. The Bandits went on a mini run to start the 2nd quarter, scoring 7 unanswered points behind baskets from Greg Rudon (10 pts), and FaronLouriano (7 pts 4 rebs) eventually pulling within 8 pts of the Tiger sharks 30-22 at the conclusion of the first half.
In 3rd quarter action Rassi Jenkins extended the Tiger sharks lead to 34-25 with back to back baskets, both being on the offensive glass following missed baskets by teammates, Raul Roches (11 pts 8 rebs) and Kirk Burgess (6 pts 11 rebs 3 asst 4 stls). Things begun to fall apart for the Bandits even more when Ashton Edwards (13 pts 2 asst) and George Williams (32 pts 3 rebs 6 asst 2 stls) hit back to back treys for the Sharks, ballooning their lead to 56-36 at the end of 3rd quarter play. From there it was essentially downhill for the Bandits as they were outscored 25-19 in the 4th quarter on their way to the 81-55 loss.
The Bandits had sub-par performances from American import Richard Smith III who could only muster a measly 6 pts 8 rebs. In fact the Bandits as a team had only one player in double figures that being from the veteran Greg “Chippy” Rudon. Obviously this kind of lackluster performance clearly will not get the job done against a team the caliber of the Tiger sharks.
As a team the Tiger sharks shot 44% from the field, hitting 11 of 31 from three point range, compared to the Bandits 35% from the field and 4 of 22 from long distance. Rebounding was pretty even with the Tiger sharks holding the edge 44 to 37, while points in the paint was lopsided in favor of the Sharks 40-22. With the win the Sharks now stands atop the league boasting a perfect 4-0 record, while the Bandits fall to 2-1 on the season.